20 NATURAL HISTORY OF ARCTIC AMERICA. 



>^'(/////o mlur, and oue other species of /Salmo that 1 could not prociu'e 

 enougli of to identify, are caught to some extent in June and September 

 in some of the larger fjords; they are mostly caught Avitli a sj)ear, but 

 sometimes with a hook. (For description vide under hunting-gear, «S:c.) 



When these tish are caught, they are put into a seal-skin bag, and it 

 remains tied up till the whole becomes a mass of putrid and fermenting 

 fish, about as repulsive to taste, sight, and smell as can be imagined. 

 Coitus scorplus, which contributes so largely towards the Greeidander's 

 larder, is not utilized by the Cumberland Eskimo, except in cases of a 

 scarcity of other food supplies; the fish is abundant in their waters, 

 h()\ve\ er, and fully as good eating as they are on the Greenland coast. 



Birds and their eggs also contribute towards their sustenance in sea- 

 son; they are extremely fond of eggs, and devour them in astonishing 

 (plant ities. 



The "black skin" of the whale, called by them mulctuJc, is esteemed 

 the greatest delicacy. When they first procure a supply of this food, 

 they almost invariably eat themselves sick, especially the children. AYe 

 found this black skin not unpleasant tasthig when boiled and then pickled 

 in strong vinegar and eaten cold; but the first attempts at masticatmg it 

 will remind one of chewing India rubber. When eaten to excess, espe- 

 cially when raw, it acts as a powerfid laxative. It is generally eaten 

 with about half an inch of blubber adhering. 



The greater portion of their food is eaten raw, especially in w inter. 

 A\]i('u they cook at aU, they onlj^ "simmer" it over their lamjis in a pot 

 of soapstone. These pots are from eight to twenty inches in length, 

 usually about sixteen inches, and though of variable patterns, the length 

 is generally three times the width or depth. Among such Eskimo as 

 are able to procure old cast-away meat-cans from around the ships, tiu 

 has superseded the soapstone both for lamps and boiling-pots. 



In summer, especially when on hunting excursions, they very often 

 '•fry" meat by making a little hreplace of stones, and laying a Hat i)iece 

 of stone on the top. The opening to receive the fuel sui)ply is to wind- 

 ward. l'(»r fuel at such times they use Cassiope tctragona nud Jjcdiim 

 pdlitstrc; these shrubs make a (juick and very hot fire. It would be 

 comparatively an easy task for these people to gather enough Cussiope 

 tcfrogona during the summer to burn during the coldest Aveather, and 

 not rely wholly upon bltd)b<n'. 



When the Eskimo have l»een sinunering meat, especially seal, in their 

 boiling-pots, they pour olf the li(]U(tf' and mix it with about an equal 



